The number of casualties following a Russian ballistic missile strike on port infrastructure in Ukraine’s Odesa region has risen, emergency services said on Saturday. The attack took place on the evening of 19 December and targeted civilian port facilities in Odesa district.

According to the latest confirmed information, eight people were killed as a result of the strike, while 27 others sustained injuries of varying severity. The update was reported by The WP Times, citing statements from emergency responders published via the Telegram messaging platform.

“Eight lives were taken by the hostile attack in the Odesa region. Another 27 people were injured,” emergency services said in a statement.

The State Emergency Service of Ukraine said Russia carried out the missile strike late on Friday evening, hitting a port infrastructure facility in Odesa district. According to rescuers, some of the injured were travelling in a bus that was located at the epicentre of the explosion at the moment of impact.

Emergency crews also reported that several lorries caught fire in a parking area near the site of the strike. In addition, passenger vehicles were damaged by the blast. Firefighters were deployed to the scene, and all fires were promptly extinguished, the service said.

Russian attack on ports in the Odesa region on 19 December

Earlier, Russian forces carried out a large-scale ballistic missile attack on port infrastructure facilities in Odesa district. As a result of the shelling, parked lorries caught fire in the affected area. Initial reports following the attack had indicated seven fatalities and 15 injured, figures that were later revised upward as emergency operations continued and additional victims were identified.

Ukrainian authorities have also noted that in the Odesa region, repeated Russian attacks on energy infrastructure have already led to the declaration of a state-level emergency situation, reflecting the cumulative impact of strikes on critical civilian facilities.

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